singletrackmind:- after stripping 5 HT2 BB's over the last 6 months (not mine), all had failed on the none drive side bearing. All due to the ingres of water, which quickly rusts the bearing track and balls overnight. Then when next used, if it does turn, it will be grinding its way round with rusty pitted balls and bearing surface.

My guess is that the radius on the back of the crank arm helps to channel the water directly into the seal area of the bearing. The drive side however, gets a lot more protection from the spinning sprockets, which will help deflect any muck and water away from said bearing.

gunthunter:- I did it myself. Got the idea from when I had my 5spot, and just happen to have kept the grease gun after selling it. The grease ports are from some old spherical bearings. To get the grease ports where I wanted them, I had to mark the BB cups when they were in the frame, so as they would return to the same spot when refitted. Not expensive, but a bit fiddly.

Is being serviceable not a step backwards from the sealed fit and forget cartridge units?

People seem to be accepting they're 'serviceable' as a mitigating excuse for the inherently poor design. Just another thing to have to service on your bike. Some people must spend more time 'servicing' than riding

Had XT BB on mine for at least 15 months now with no issues and still running smooth.
I understand that people often fit them with way too much preload on the bearing and that makes them die very quickly.

My XTR (970) BB is still going strong after nearly 2 years. Oddly, my SRAM GXP cups from my rival chainset is still play free after 2 winters of commuting! (only thing from the groupset that isn't dead tbh).

Had mixed experiences from Hope BB's and would probably only stuff a King in if I was to buy a flashy after-market BB (purely based on other people's experiences might I add).

retr83.......I sold the Hustler frame last year with the grease port BB still fitted and going strong. I have done the same mod to my current Orange 5 & 160, with the exception of fitting 2.5mm grub screws on the 160 instead of the Zerk ports. This was due to the BB shell wall thickness fouling the Zerk port when tightened fully.

I think there is a bit of a misconception about why the none drive side bearing usually wears out 1st. Some folks recon its to do with the preload being on that side. The preload nut pulls the drive side arm as much as it pushes on the none driveside arm, SO the bearing preload should be equal. The main difference between the two sides is the protection the driveside bearing gets from crap thrown up by the front wheel, ie. the chain and sprockets etc. The none driveside arm has a gap at the back that lets the crap in.

If you are going to the trouble of splitting your HT II BB to regrease, take extra care of the inner surface of the plastic top hat insert that the outer seal runs against, and the seal itself. SEALS need lubricating as well as bearings. A dry seal will wear quicker and let crap in to destroy the bearing.

messiah... I got the grease ports from rod end bearings that were U/S (nobody had bothered grease them). I only used the 2.5mm grub screws because the larger protruding grease ports would foul the BB face on my Alpine 160 due to it having a thicker wall (bigger dia. outer) than some other BB shells.

You can buy small packs of Zerk ports for Turner bikes, Try the importers

I have put a lizardskins headset protector around the non-drive beaaring housing to stop the shit getting in as it is always this side of my Shimano BBs that die. The neoprene flexes quite well with the arm to maintain a shield as it rotates.
I take it off to dry after a wet ride or when I wash the bike.

Sorry to poo-poo the grease port idea a bit but squeezing more grease in will not neccessarilly squeeze contaminated grease out, I would have thought.

imp999 - Member
...Sorry to poo-poo the grease port idea a bit but squeezing more grease in will not neccessarilly squeeze contaminated grease out, I would have thought.

If you squeeze more in when it's new and displace as much of the air as possible, then when it is cooled down rapidly from hot, it won't cause a low pressure in the bearing which then sucks in whatever is adjacent - usually the moisture which has caused the rapid cooling.

My shimano one hasn't totally given up yet, but after a hard winter and a bit of neglect my driveside bearing is developing a bit of play now... The superstar one with the removable bearings seem like a good idea to me. Looks like you can remove the bearings without removing the cups from the frame too, so that cuts down in lots of hassle. I can't seem to see replaceable bearings separately listed on their site, but it has a 5 year warranty anyway, which should cover most problems!